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Bought a quad the other day and received them Wednesday. REALLY nice tubes - purdy, sturdy and nicely constructed - they fit very tightly and solidly into the sockets.
From the getgo I MUCH prefer them to the EL34 Flying "C"s I've been running the past month (not sure why as I no longer care much for these tubes, but they were my favorite current production EL34 for quite a while) and they are already preferable to the EH EL34 I've been enjoying for several months (great tubes- just a bit "sterile" for my ears).
I had used the JJ KT-77 last year for many months until one went "ballistic" and up until then I found them the best, most musical output tubes I've run. After that experience I decided not to tempt fate by buying more of the same. Over the past 4-5 years I've tried almost ALL the current production EL34 and variants as well as a quad of vintage Mullard xf2 and the JJ KT-77 were easily the most satisfying, were being the operative word there.
The Gold Lion are biased at 1.56 (+/- a tad according to my rebuilt Dyna70 meter) in triode mode and with only a couple hours on them they are extremely resolving and musical. I'm expecting the bass to open up a bit on the low end (which is a little light now) as they burn in more and don't expect them to REALLY shine until maybe 40 hours in, which has been my experience with all other output tubes. Something to look forward too, as they are mighty nice now...
I'll report more in a couple weeks, but these are VERY fine tubes from the start and I wanted to mention that for anyone that has some on the way
or is considering ordering some.
You really have something to look (and listen) forward to!
"...You're all welcome to stay for the next set...we're going to play all the same tunes, but in different keys..." -Count Basie
Follow Ups:
I ordered a quad of the Gen KT-77 reissues from Jim to use as output tubes for my Leben CS600. I'm by no means a tube connoisseur, and was hesitant to get into NOS tube route, as I find so many of the tubes prohibitively expensive. So I wanted to try the best current versions available before stepping up to NOS.
Before, I tried Sovtek 6L6GC, as well as Winged C 6L6GC & EL34s. I didn't like Sovteks much. Despite the good balance, they were overly bright on top. Winged C 6L6GCs had great balance & proportion, as well as pretty good bass, but sounded recessed. The Winged C EL34s had gorgeous midrange, but poor balance along with a bit too-forward presentation of music, and the more I used them, the more I became aware of the tube glare... not good.
So I decided to try KT77s, to see if I can get a compromise between the EL34s' great singing midrange and the proportional balance of attack of the 6L6GCs. There was no way in hell I was going to try the JJ KT-77s, after reading about some tubes blowing up. I don't care if they addressed the build-quality issue. That's not one problem I'm willing to bet on.
So I got the Gen KT-77s. Barely have 10 hrs on them. Been listening to a LOT of music with them. Not broken in yet, but these are by far the best of the tubes I've used. By far. The balance is... magisterial. With great orchestral pieces, like Stravinsky's "Rite" or Mahler, there is tremendous poise & composure. But the music doesn't sound recessed as it did with Winged C 6L6GCs, especially the bass. Soundstaging seems deeper. And the midrange fairly sings with really golden tone, and now the tube glare is completely gone! My Leben sounds like a different, even better amp. (If you're a Leben owner, you must try the Gen KT-77s, especially if you are going to plunk down a hefty wad of bills on NOS tubes.)
The tubes aren't burned in yet, so sometimes on transients, the response seems a bit slower than the EL34s that I've been using. I'm going to see if this changes with time & will report back. I don't find the bass lacking, but there is indication that the bass will open up, too, with time with these Gen KT-77s, which would be the icing on the cake.
All in all, I'm VERY happy with the Genalex reissue KT-77s. I have no idea whether or not I'll get into NOS tubes, but all I know is that I have no desire to. Even with them not broken in, they're hitting the right spots for me.
http://selfdivider.com/
Except that my favorite EL34 where the Siemens/RTF, also liked the sound of JJ KT77 very much, thick body, perfect mids, but tube fireworks and checking and adjusting bias all the time to avoid them, is not my cup of tea, so I bought Shuguang KT66, good, but not quite as good as the JJ, lively, a bit thin...
The Gold Lion reissue are in the same league as the JJ, but bias hasnt changed one mA since they arrived, perfect stability...
Antonio Melo Ribeiro
Would you say that the JJ KT77 and the Genalex KT77 sound similar?
They sound both very good, similar rich mids, body, natural, 3d, the Genalex a bit livelier, more "extended" highs...
Depends oh the rest of the system, if it is bright, the JJ might tame it a bit, otherwise I prefer the Genalex...
But beeing unstable, dangerous, I wont use the JJ again, not nice to be all the time worried that one tube might fail and spoil the amplifier...
Antonio Melo Ribeiro
Antonio, I agree with your assessment: the Gold Lion just plain sing! "Natural" and 3d indeed!
Music is just so much more... substantial ... than with any of the EL34 I've used and at least as pleasing as the JJKT-77.
And burn in seems to be taking less time than (for example) the current production Mullard EL34, which just had a "steely" sound for nearly 40 hours. I'm still waiting (hoping?) for a bit more bottom to kick in. The Gold Lion have all the clarity of the EH 6ca7 I've been using for the past several months, but are less "sterile" - seeming to add a bit of "soul" that the EH lacked.
The Gold Lion are a real winner for me, and not having to fret about reliability (as I came to with the JJ) just makes them even more of a pleasure!
"...You're all welcome to stay for the next set...we're going to play all the same tunes, but in different keys..." -Count Basie
The JJ took forever to burn in...
I use an active crossover before the amplifier and a subwoofer, so deep bass is not an issue, still bass is very tight and fast with the Gold Lions, and most important, sounds full body, like the JJ...
Antonio Melo Ribeiro
I also changed from EL34 to KT77.
I have the JJ KT77 and so far had no problem with them after several hundred hours of use in my CJ CAV50.
After your Genalex have burned in could you give us a comparisson to the JJ KT77?
I have a quad of the real thing (1960's brown base GEC NOS examples) but haven't tried them yet.Perhaps I should continue saving them and get a quad of the new New Sensor reissue.
I'm using a quad of Siemens/RFT EL34s right now and still have the original Mullard XF2s stashed away.
Musetap,
How well matched are the tubes for current draw? Do you have a way to measure that in your setup? I only ask because I was just checking that seller's feedback and saw your comments? I really need tightly matched pairs as the amp's I plan on using them in, Fairchild 255As, have no DC balance provision. Thanks if you can comment!
s.l.
I got a platinun matched quad, apparentely they are supposed to be matched in the factory, not the dealer, but only 2 where matched, one lower, the other higher, 10 mA difference on my amplifier...
Antonio Melo Ribeiro
I have posted MANY times about the inconsistent and often marginal to poor "factory" matching. Most (not all, but a large majority) eBay sellers sell "factory matched" tubes.First off it is NOT done at the factory, it's done here in the US by the importer. And the "Platinum" designation is meaningless. A few years ago they offered two levels of matching, a "quick match" for lack of a better term, and a higher grade match that included a 24 hour burn-in. The "quick match" went away, and the remaining match was designated "Platinum".
I have also written many times that the "factory" match is based on plate current only. This means that variations in screen current are not accounted for, and since in the vast majority of amps we measure cathode current (which equals plate and screen current combined) the screen current variations are a significant error factor.
10 ma difference is not unusual, I often see more than that.
For the record, I match at real operating voltages, and I match based on cathode current, not plate current only. And (in defense of the importer) I measure each tube's characteristics one at a time, and match tubes that way. They couldn't possibly do that in the quantities they need to do.
...
Antonio Melo Ribeiro
Hiya, not sure about the matching and I have no way to test that. My amp is easy to bias and not finicky, so I'm pretty casual regarding how closely tubes are matched.
The seller I bought from "may" be able to help you with the info you need. I've bought from him before and he is quite accommodating. There was also another dealer on eBay selling these tubes- ctech-electronics-store - and it looks like they provide more accurate numbers regarding matching. I have not dealt with them though they have very good feedback.
As these tubes gain more of a market I'm sure you'll be able to find a dealer that can closely match some for you, but check with Jason and see if he can do so.
2 more hours of listening today was the best I could get in and... these are great sounding tubes, they really draw you into the music.
"...You're all welcome to stay for the next set...we're going to play all the same tunes, but in different keys..." -Count Basie
They're in very short supply for a while, as you would expect from a brand new tube. I have 50 pieces coming about 7/20, but beyond that I'm not sure what the availability status is. I could only get 10 pieces at a time there for a while. Zero duds or issues of any kind so far, but my sample is still pretty small. They are indeed VERY well made. Nice tubes indeed!
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